March Events at the California Trail Interpretive Center

ELKO, Nev. – The California Trail Interpretive Center offers up some unique and free opportunities during March to gain insight into the world of the emigrant traveler.

Primitive bow making is on the agenda for March 9 at the California Trail Interpretive Center from noon until 4 p.m. Host Kent McAdoo, an accomplished primitive bow maker, will present a demonstration on the craft and allow observers to watch the different techniques, materials and methods used in the construction of these early hunting weapons.

In honor of Women’s History Month, Trail Center staff will give free presentations for the next two Sundays about women who walked very different paths through history. Each presentation begins at 2 p.m.

On March 10, Jan Petersen will discuss “Elko County Women: Sinners and Saints” about women who made the desert their home, struggled against the odds and helped their families persevere. Some of these women were of Italian, Chinese or Basque descent.

Tiffany Cusick will talk about “Petticoat Prospectors: The Real Gold-diggers” on March 17. This presentation focuses on Frances Williams, Lillian Malcolm and Firminia “Mina” Sarras who labored in a man’s world and often had to hide their identities as women to survive. Some were successful and towns were named after them; others were less fortunate.

The California Trail Interpretive Center, operated by the BLM, is eight miles west of Elko on I-80 at Hunter exit 292. The California Trail Interpretive Center is currently open from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., Wednesday through Sunday. Visit www.blm.gov/cv5c, californiatrailcenter.org, our Facebook page or call (775) 738-1849 for more information.

The BLM manages more than 245 million acres of public land, the most of any Federal agency. This land, known as the National System of Public Lands, is primarily located in 12 Western states, including Alaska. The BLM also administers 700 million acres of sub-surface mineral estate throughout the nation. The BLM's mission is to manage and conserve the public lands for the use and enjoyment of present and future generations under our mandate of multiple-use and sustained yield. In Fiscal Year 2013, the BLM generated $4.7 billion in receipts from public lands.